This Notice replaces PA-07-439, and provides program specific information for Extramural Loan Repayment Program for Health Disparities Research (LRP-HDR). Applicants must refer to the general LRP Notice providing information on the application period, general eligibility, annual receipt and review schedule, application material, evaluation criteria, and program administration details: NIH Extramural Loan Repayment Programs (LRP), NOT-OD-08-083. Through this Notice, NIH and NCMHD invite qualified health professionals to apply for participation in the LRP-HDR.

LRP-HDR PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

The objective of the LRP-HDR is the recruitment and retention of highly qualified health professionals to research careers that focus on minority health or other health disparity issues.

The Program serves as an avenue for NIH and the NCMHD to engage and promote the development of research programs that reflect the variety of issues and problems associated with disparities in health status. In addition, the Director, NCMHD, is statutorily required to ensure that not fewer than 50 percent of the contracts are awarded to qualified health professionals that are members of health disparities populations. This requirement highlights the need for the involvement of a cadre of culturally competent health professionals in minority health and other health disparities research.

“Health disparity populations” are determined by the Director of NCMHD, after consultation with the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and are defined as populations where there is significant disparity in the overall rate of disease incidence, prevalence, morbidity, mortality, or survival rates as compared to the health status of the general population. The following populations have been designated as health disparity populations: Blacks/African Americans, Hispanics/Latinos, Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders and the medically underserved, i.e., individuals from the Appalachian region.

“Health disparities research” is defined as basic, clinical, or behavioral research on a health disparities population (including individual members and communities of such populations) including the causes of such health disparities and methods to prevent, diagnose and treat such disparities.

“Medically underserved” refers to individuals that lack access to primary and specialty care either because they are socioeconomically disadvantaged and may or may not live in areas with high poverty rates or because they reside in rural areas. The term also refers to individuals that reside in geographic areas where the Index of Medical Underservice (IMU) is 62 or less. The Health Resource Services Administration (HRSA) criteria designate a service area with an IMU of 62 or less as a “medically underserved area (MUA)”. The IMU is a weighted score derived from four variables: the ratio of primary medical care physicians per 1,000 population, infant mortality rate, percentage of population below the federal poverty level, and percentage of the population age 65 years or over.

“Minority health conditions” refers to all diseases, disorders, and other conditions (including mental health and substance abuse) that are unique to, more serious, or more prevalent in racial and ethnic minorities, for which the medical risk factors or types of medical interventions may be different, or research involving such populations as subjects or data on such individuals is insufficient.

“Minority health disparities research” is defined as basic, clinical, or behavioral research on minority health conditions, including research to prevent, diagnose, and treat such conditions.

ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS

In addition to the eligibility criteria outlined in the general Notice (see:NIH Extramural Loan Repayment Programs, NOT-OD-08-083), applicants for LRP-HDR must have a Ph.D., M.D., D.O., D.D.S., D.M.D., D.P.M., Pharm.D., Psy.D., D.C., N.D., or equivalent doctoral degree from an accredited institution, and must engage in qualified minority health or other health disparities research as defined above.

FUNDS AVAILABLE

The NCMHD intends to commit approximately $9 million annually to fund LRP-HDR contracts.

REQUIRED FEDERAL CITATIONS

Awards are made pursuant to the Minority Health and Health Disparities Research and Education Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-525) that added Section 485G of the Public Health Service Act (42 USC 287c-33). The Federal Debt Collections Procedures Act of 1990, contained in Public Law 101-647, requires that an individual who has a judgment lien against his/her property for a debt to the United States shall not be eligible to receive funds directly from the Federal government in any program, except funds to which the debtor is entitled as a beneficiary, until the judgment is paid in full or otherwise satisfied (28 U.S.C. 3201). The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number for LRP-HDR is 93.307.